Speakers Urge Graduates to “Get Involved” at the Annual Kaskaskia College Pre-Engineering Banquet

Kaskaskia College held its annual Pre-Engineering Banquet on
Wednesday, May 2.A number of speakers,
including Kaskaskia College administrators, former KC graduates and faculty of
the SIU Edwardsville School of Engineering, addressed this year’s cohort of
graduating students.

Eric Hofelich, Pre-Engineering Coordinator, Professor, and
Mathematics Department Chair, acted as the master of ceremonies for the event. Professor Hofelich has been touted as being
largely responsible for the success of the resurgence of the Pre-Engineering
program over the last three years.

Two speakers from SIU Edwardsville, Dr. Hasan Savim, Dean of
the School of Engineering, and Dr. Cem Karacal, Associate Dean, Professor and
PhD Program Coordinator for the School of Engineering, praised Kaskaskia
College for the work that KC faculty does in preparing its pre-engineering
students for transfer to SIUE, and for the continuing success of the two
schools’ 2+2 Articulation Agreement, in which students enrolled in KC’s
Pre-engineering program meld seamlessly and successfully into junior level
classes at the university. KC and SIUE
signed an extension of the 2+2 agreement at the banquet.

Drs. Savim and Karacal, addressing the students, also
emphasized the need for engineering students to get involved in projects,
which, they said, helps to build leadership qualities and enhances their
ability to tackle real-world engineering problems. The most successful transfer students have
project experience which empowers them to take on more team memberships and leadership
roles at the university level. One
shining example of this is Derek Hoerchler, a KC grad who, upon transferring to
SIUE, was able to lead the school’s Formula 1 race car team and was named the
Outstanding Senior in Mechanical Engineering recently.

Derek Hoerchler was also a featured speaker at the banquet,
where he, too, praised the KC faculty and the 2+2 agreement, saying that he
felt better prepared for junior level classes at SIUE than even those students
who attended the university as freshmen and sophomores. He also advised the KC graduates to become
involved in teams and projects, saying that leading a team is a good way to be
noticed and to add the extra element of leadership experience to a resume. Derek attended along with his brother Steve,
also a standout, soon-to-be graduate of the SIUE School of Engineering, and
other classmates including Tiffany Geppert, and Ryan Quick, all of whom were
active in the 2+2 program and were members of engineering clubs and teams while
attending SIUE.

Another KC grad, Paul Schumaker, also spoke. Paul is graduating from the University of
Illinois this spring with his Bachelor of Science degree in Agricultural
Engineering. Paul is the recipient of
the Jimmy H. Clark Dairy Achievement Award and the President of the chapter of
the American Society for Agricultural and Biological Engineers and is secretary
of the Illini Dairy Club. Paul echoed the
idea that a high level of involvement leads to high achievement, and was
unstinting in his praise of the KC pre-engineering program. He believes that his time at KC gave him an
edge over other junior level students at the University of Illinois.

Michael Elliot, soon-to-be graduate of KC and President of
the Kaskaskia Engineering Association, KC’s Engineering Club, spoke of the
club’s involvement with the Centralia Haunted House, and the full-sized
“Haunted Outhouse” that was on display in the banquet hall. At the push of a button, the outhouse rocks
and sways on it base before the door flings open and a spritz of cherry-scented
water shoots out. The project called upon the club members differing skills and
interests, including mechanical, electrical, and computer engineering
skills. Elliot plans to have the
“Haunted Outhouse” on display at this year’s Centralia Haunted House.

The featured speaker of the evening was Mr. Gary Hahn, the
Structural Department Head at Centralia based Rhutasel and Associates, which,
according to its website www.rhutasel.net, is “an association of
professionals each bringing a unique specialty to the organization to create a
multi-disciplinary consulting civil and structural engineering, and land
surveying professional services firm.”
Mr.Hahn is also a 1979 graduate of the Kaskaskia College pre-engineering
program.

Mr. Hahn told the attendees of his experiences as a civil
engineer, and advised the new graduates to be willing to try things outside of
their comfort level as engineers.
“Opportunities open up for you as you learn to open up to them,” he
said.

He also confirmed that, as an employer who hires young
engineers, having team experience and leadership qualities can set one
candidate apart from others with equal qualifications.

Although Mr. Hahn’s teachers at KC are long retired, he
remembered how the pre-engineering program at KC helped to give him the
confidence that he could tackle the coursework at the university level, and
said that he was pleased to see that the highest of standards are being
maintained by the current KC faculty and their cohorts of students.

For more information on the Kaskaskia College
Pre-Engineering Program, please contact Professor Eric Hofelich at 618-545-3359
or ehofelich@kaskaskia.edu.​